treequeen

Dr. Ben-Mier St. Vincents Charity Hospital Cleveland. http://www.stvincentcharity.com/programs-services/centers-excellence/bariatric/

sorry you had to make so many calls... I would have thought they would have been more helpful. Kind of disappointed Glad there is something comperable on mfp.

If there is a costco near you, they have a vita-mix road show a couple times a year and have a contract that guarantees a cheaper price than from vita-mix themselves. You get the machine, cookbook, dvd... for under $400. You can only get a big set with extra parts @ costco.com so in store is the cheapest way to go.. And you can't beat the 7 year guarantee. Definatly better than burning out blender after blender.

I work at a Costco... I know that the food court has a binder with all the nutritional info in it.. so I'd assume the deli does too. You can call and ask or knock on their window next time you are in. If they don't know.. you should be able to go to Costco.com and send a comment and get a response that way. Let me know if any of these methods help. (I wish they'd just put the stats on the packaging).

Be proud of yourself that you are ok being alone and don't Need a man. I have been single for the last 10 yrs and I understand how it gets lonely sometimes. And it really sucks when the only ppl who hit on you would never in a million years trip your trigger. My feelings are, that you have to be ok with yourself first or you could end up with someone who is below your standards. (trust me.. that is what happened to me when I married a loser 12 yrs ago). I won't let it happen again, so I'd rather be alone; and if it takes losing weight to attract my kind of guy.. so be it. (Losing weight will help me be the person I want to be.. hence help me attract the kind of ppl I want to be around). So much luck to you..good things come to those who wait afterall.

By your measurments I see we are pretty much the same shape.. Right now I'm 18/20 on top 26 bottom. I was really hoping to lose the booty shelf.. and be a little more proportioned... Did your proportions stay pretty much the same (only smaller of course)?

A vita mix is a fancy (expensive) blender that can turn anything into a smoothie, soup, icecream, bread, flour, milk... You name it (it cooks and freezes). You can hide veggies in recipes so the kids get the nutrician in... It uses the whole fruit or vegetable (minus any bad parts...ie banana peel or too many apple seeds). It is great for adding fiber to your diet as well. You can see them @ vitamix.com the company is based in Ohio. Vitamix machines are used in places like Robeks. You can get them cheaper at Costco when they are doing a show. It comes with a 7 yr all incusive warranty too.

I started my required 6month doc/dietician supervised diet 2 weeks ago. I joined my fitness pal .com to help me with it (I learned about that site on here). So far I have lost 11#s and have looked on their community and seen soo many success stories..now I am having doubts about the surgery. Can I do it on my own? If I can, would it last? What if I go thru all this pre-op stuff and back out because of this calorie counter...and if that fails, I would have wasted all my effort toward getting surgery.. I wish this was easier and less confusing. Anyone else go thru this?

www.greensmoothiegirl.com

My hope is that losing weight... maybe someone I am attracted to will actually be attracted to me back. I too wouldn't be attracted to myself like this so I can't expect anyone else to be. I have been the biggest person (or nearly so) since kindergarten. I have always been isolated so the fear and trust issues are definatly there. When getting hit on so often turned out to be a joke, knowing when it's real is pretty impossible. My biggest fear is that when I reach goal, ppl still won't like me and I won't have the weight to blame. Of course... after all the emotional turmoil we've experienced because of our weight over the years, a little more over our weight loss won't kill us.

Sounds to me like you NEED to do this. It seems like you already know that is your best hope for a better healthier life. And the sleeve being approved is awsome...my doc said yesterday that the sleeve is the safest option... so what do you have to lose? If in doubt... read these boards!

I had my first session with the dietician today (pre-op)... had no idea it would take nearly 2 hours! I left feeling pretty overwhelmed. I am not much of a cook.. have no idea what proper portion sizes are, and almost never have a balanced meal... Now I have to weigh and measure and count everything... The balancing will be tough. How hard was this process for you? How long did it take to catch on? Did you come close to losing the expected 10% of your weight during the 6 month diet period?

I've decided that if my "friends" can't be supportive or at least keep the negativity to themselves, I can just make new friends when i get thin.

I would like to think I could lose weight and keep it off, but the sad fact is, I can lose a little weight and then gain it back.... history repeats itself.. I need to do this...I want to maintain a weightloss forever and the sleeve is my only chance and now is the time... before I get any co-morbities.. So now the ball is rolling I get to see the doc/dietician this thurs to start my 6month supervised diet. I'm sure I'll have moments of doubt about going thru with it, but I will come here and read more success stories and My day will come and I will get my sleeve and my existence will end and my life will begin. Now that is something to look foreward to. Good luck with your decision.

damn... I was hoping for some shoe shopping... Would love to go down a size to a 9.. I guess the good news is I will be able to buy more shoes from the womens section instead of mens if the width thins out.

Thank you for sharing your story so far... It does help to be able to visualize what it could be like after surgery.

I was the same way.. trying to decide which surgery, but after reading about all the complications and all the ppl who've had revisions... I would Never encourage anyone to get the band. It's sleeve or bust for me.

See how great you are! Helping so many of us and I for one appriciate it. You've got friends here. I think that will be the worst part for me... I am usually pretty concerned about other ppls opinions of me... stupid I know. I will definatly be willing to make new friends! Thanks for sharing I did want to ask how your skin has recovered so far.

thinoneday- I understand your repulsion... I feel that way too... I am not sleeved yet, but I feel the same way about other fat ppl as I do about myself in my current condition. I think because when I see someone else, I wonder if that is how I look to other ppl...Fat grosses me out and when it's in my face it is a reminder that I am one of them and when ppl see me they think bad things...sometimes say hurtful things...or act like i'm invisible. Even though fat repulses me, I am always nice to ppl no matter how they look.

I wish I could watch vlogs, but my stupid netbook just buffers...it's very frustrating..(doesn't help that I am technology illiterate).

wow..nice...i only get 60% STD

I have to do a 6month doctor supervised diet before I can even get approved for surgery... They are supposed to call me to make an appointment, but I'm still waiting. I was really hoping to have surgery sooner. I wish you a quick trip to your goal.

I know several ppl who quit smoking using hypnosis.. Could be worth a try... it's drug free anyway.

thinoneday- I find it funny too... drinking very cold water will actually help with weight Loss as the body has to burn more energy to warm it up. (that's what I read anyway)